Recreational vehicles, such as travel trailers and motor homes, have dimensional limits to accommodate highway regulations. The interior space is restricted by the width of the vehicle. In order to increase the useable interior space of recreational vehicles, slide-out rooms have been added to the bodies of the vehicles. These rooms are retracted and stored in the interior of the vehicles during highway travel. When the vehicles are parked, the slide-out rooms are moved laterally of the vehicle's side walls to an extended position to increase the useable interior space of the vehicles. Rollers associated with the slide-out rooms are used to facilitate the lateral movement of the rooms relative to floors and side walls of the vehicles. The rollers create grooves and wear patterns in the floor carpets of the vehicles, which require premature repair and replacement. When the slide-out rooms are in the retracted positions, they must be secured to prevent movement during travel of the vehicle. Latches anchored to the side walls of the vehicles secure the slide-out rooms to the vehicles. These latches require the addition of substantial structure to the side walls to accommodate the additional forces created by the movable slide-out rooms. The latches in some vehicles are difficult to access and are inconvenient to use. The rooms are mounted on slide mechanisms attached to the frames of the vehicles. Power-operated units, such as hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, and gearing mechanisms are used to operate the slide mechanisms to extend and retract the slide-out rooms. During the construction of the vehicles, the slide-out rooms are adjusted to properly fit the side walls and rigidly secured to the slide mechanisms. The construction makes it difficult to readjust the fit of the slide-out room relative to the vehicle's side walls and floors as needed during the life of the vehicles. The recreational vehicles with the side-out room of the invention hereinafter described overcomes the disadvantages of the prior slide-out room structures.
Examples of recreational vehicles equipped with slide-out rooms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,312,159; 4,500,132; and, 5,237,782. W. A. Paul, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,312,159, discloses a house trailer having a tip-out room hinged to one side wall of the trailer. When the room is in the out position, it is held on a hinge and room support. The room support has a first beam attached to the frame of the trailer and a second beam telescoped into the first beam. An adjustable post mounted on the outer end of the second beam retains the room in an adjusted horizontal position. C. T. Yoder, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,132, discloses a travel trailer with a slide-out room having a floor, side walls, end wall, and a roof. Movement of the slide-out room between its extended and retracted or travel positions is achieved with an electric motor connected through a gear box to telescopic extension members. The outside wall of the slide-out room is connected to the extension members. The connection includes vertically-adjustable bolt and nut assemblies to vertically position the slide-out room relative to the trailer side wall. D. R. Cooper, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,237,782, discloses a travel trailer with a slide-out room mounted on movable rails. The room and rails are laterally moved with a worm gear driven by an electric motor. The outside wall of the slide-out room has an outwardly-directed peripheral extension supporting a liquid-sealing assembly. The sealing assembly engages an adjacent portion of the trailer side wall to prevent water, snow, and air from flowing into the interior of the trailer when the slide-out room is in the retracted position.